If you saw the two previous articles, we’ve set up ProPresenter and OBS for live streaming on either one or two computers. Now let’s take a quick look at using Facebook for your streaming service.
On your church’s FB page you’ll see—somewhere
Audio Engineering
Articles and thoughts
In the previous article I explained how to set this up with one computer. Why use a second? Your main machine might not be able to process the stream fast enough, resulting in dropouts. But in my case I needed two solutions: I wanted a second person to supervise the live stream—make sure it’s working, change scenes during the service, maybe handle the audio mix. I also needed another physical
Like many of you, my church is using OBS to stream our services. It’s a free application that makes streaming really easy to set up; it’s not the ultimate solution, but for folks like us it’s perfect. We feed two cameras from a video switcher, ProPresenter output, and an audio feed from our mixer. What I want to explain is my setup in terms of hardware and software while providing a couple of options
As we’ve seen in previous articles, there are several options for creating a mix for live streaming, each with its level of quality and complexity. One of the most powerful methods, similar to using a second console dedicated to the stream, is a computer-based DAW. A DAW is multitrack recording software like Pro Tools, Logic Pro, and others. It’s just like a console with individual channels, processing, and a mix output.
Probably the easiest and most robust way to connect your audio gear from stage inputs to console and streaming computer is via Dante. This protocol transmits digital audio over standard Ethernet/CAT5 systems, which makes it extremely efficient and economical. No more weird RF interference in your long analog cable runs. No more thick, heavy bundles of mic snakes to run between stage and front of house. And it easily scales, meaning you can simply add more devices and computers
Probably the most difficult signal processor to understand is a compressor. Most people get the idea that it squashes a sound, but that’s as far as it goes. Below is an excerpt from my Recording Audio book. Read through this, think about it, but then spend a lot of time playing with various recorded tracks going through a compressor. Experiment with the controls
Here is a PDF of my presentation at Worship Summit Live in July 2020. For those of you who attended, it would be more helpful to look at the recent 4-part blog posts where I detailed all this for you. Let me know if you have questions.